


Making the Rounds

by Nemi_Almasy



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, M/M, Oral Sex, Porn, Smut, Tsengru is endgame tho, Well and a little fluff and relationship exposition, it's just porn folks!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:41:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 18,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25320286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nemi_Almasy/pseuds/Nemi_Almasy
Summary: Rufus Shinra has a story about each of the four Turks. Some of them, he'd rather never admit out loud.Chapter 1 - Reno runs into Rufus at a swanky upper plate clubChapter 2 - Rude shows Rufus around the employee gym and they sweat it out togetherChapter 3 - Elena and Rufus work out their feelings toward Tseng with each otherChapter 4 - Tseng and Rufus finally figure out what they mean to one anotherRoughly 3 years between each chapter.
Relationships: Elena/Rufus Shinra, Reno/Rufus Shinra, Rude/Rufus Shinra, Rufus Shinra/Tseng
Comments: 37
Kudos: 164





	1. Reno

There wasn’t anyone on Gaia who enjoyed a day off more than Reno. Sure, he loved being a Turk and all, but it wasn’t worth shit if he couldn’t enjoy the perks that came with that kind of status. Years spent languishing beneath the plate felt worth it when he could blow his money on sex, alcohol, and drugs every time he had a free evening. His uniform got him into any club he wanted, his salary meant he could afford whatever the fuck he felt like buying that evening, and his status meant there were plenty of interested parties willing to take him home if he didn’t feel like paying for it.

It was his first night off in two weeks after a hellish surveillance mission that had netted very little in the way of intel. All he wanted to do was get wasted and get laid, though preferably not in that order since the latter wasn’t guaranteed if he was too out of it. His favorite place to waste his time and money lately was a swanky club in Sector 1 that most of his fellow Turks avoided. He could see why: it was a lot of rich snobby socialites grinding against each other and swapping lame stories about buying their fifth yacht or whatever the fuck it was rich people talked about. Reno didn’t give a shit about all that, he just knew that the rich brats found Turks exciting and dangerous, and they were usually pretty damn easy on the eyes. He didn’t feel like working hard for it that evening, so it seemed like his best bet outside of paying someone to help him out.

He sat at the bar with his back to it sipping a drink that was too strong and scanning the room for a decent target. He was in the mood to get railed, as it were. He could have fun with anyone in any position, but the last few times had been with women and he was eager for a switch. There was no shortage of attractive people covering every inch of the club, but he also knew that in the relatively dim lighting someone might look great from far away and terrible up close - not that he was picky by any means.

As he sat trying to decide, almost settling on a tall brunette in the corner, there was a commotion at the entrance. Two Shinra security officers stepped inside and exchanged a few words with a woman at the coat check. Reno cocked his head and leaned back against the bar, propping his elbows up and watching with the same curiosity as every other pair of eyes in the room. What were these flunkies doing in full uniform in a place like this?

The answer came quickly enough. One of the security officers stepped back outside and a moment later Rufus Shinra waltzed in wearing a crisp white suit, blonde hair perfectly disheveled, wearing the same bored look of disinterest every rich brat tended to have. Reno only recognized him from his training and stupid entertainment news pieces on the TV, he’d never actually met the guy in person, though his reputation preceded him. Sometimes a Turk would get assigned to his detail, since he was the vice president and all, but Reno was too new for something so prestigious. Nine times out of ten it was Veld’s clear favorite Tseng who got put on the job. No skin off Reno’s nose since the way Tseng told it, the kid was a real shithead.

He was real fucking nice to look at though: ice cold eyes, strong nose, and those lips - in their perpetual pout Reno had no trouble imagining how they might look in a more unsavory scenario.

Nothing more off limits than fucking the Big Boss’ son, Reno supposed. Though he was pretty fond of bending rules right to their breaking point. He watched Rufus cross the club alone, nodding at a few people he must have known, stopping to chat for a moment with two women before he made his way to the bar to get a drink with one of the women on his arm.

What a waste if he was straight.

Rufus glanced sideways at Reno while he waited for his drink.

“One of my father’s lapdogs, aren’t you?” He asked, though there wasn’t any malice in his tone.

“Nah,” said Reno, knocking back the rest of his drink and swiveling around to face the bar. “Veld’s.”

Rufus laughed. “What’s the difference?”

“Guess you don’t know much about loyalty.” Reno shrugged. “Not surprised. Your dad’s a real dick.” It could have been a mistake, but most of the Turks suspected Rufus wasn’t too fond of daddy since it was a poorly kept secret that Veld’s superior had offed Rufus’ mom when he was little.

Rufus didn’t react. The bartender set his drink down and Reno asked for another round, to which Rufus said, “Put his drinks on my tab.” Then he turned on his heel with the woman on his arm and crossed to the other side of the club.

Not that Reno couldn’t afford a few hundred gil’s worth of drinks -or thousand if he was being honest with himself - but he still wouldn’t turn his nose up at the boss buying his drinks that night. He settled back against the bar once more and watched Rufus for a moment. The woman on his arm was now seated next to him dividing up lines of coke. Several people had joined him at the table where he sat, all of them so attractive it was infuriating, all of them eager for Rufus’ attention. Reno couldn’t really blame them - Rufus was the richest guy on the planet after his dad, he was handsome and popular with the public. Who the fuck wouldn’t want to kiss his ass?

Rufus took an offered line and sat back while it hit him. He locked eyes with Reno long enough for Reno to feel unnerved, but he didn’t look away. He had never been afraid to insert himself into any conversation he wanted to be a part of, but he knew well enough he wouldn’t be welcome at that table. Those people weren’t Rufus’ friends if Reno had to guess, they were parasites feeding off of his fame. Reno had spent enough time as a street urchin in the slums to know how people like that would take to someone like him sidling up amongst them.

So he sipped his drink in quiet contemplation, found the brunette he’d been scoping out earlier had disappeared, and tried to find someone else to settle on for the evening, his eyes straying back to Rufus every time. They met each other’s gaze more than once and he was certain Rufus smirked at him, but it could have been a trick of the light.

Reno had almost decided the evening’s conquest when Rufus returned to the bar for a drink, this time alone. He leaned against the bar and observed Reno wordlessly for a moment while he awaited his order. So Reno decided to bend those rules he hated so much.

“Like what you see?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Rufus scanned his face and let his eyes stray down to his partially unbuttoned shirt. “It’s fine,” he replied with a non-committal shrug.

“Just fine?” Reno bristled. “Man, I could show you a way better time than any of those rich cunts.”

Rufus let out a bark of laughter. “Tell me how you really feel.”

“So it’s true what all the tabloid rags say about you huh? Big party boy vice president?”

“I enjoy myself from time to time,” Rufus replied. He took his drink, but remained against the bar. “I suppose I’m not surprised you’re here either. I hear this is the place Turks come for an easy lay.” He waved his hand at the group of people he’d left behind. “They find you exciting and dangerous, but if they knew what you really did they wouldn’t touch you with a ten foot pole, would they?”

“Why do you think Shinra wraps us up in such a pretty package?” Reno asked.

Rufus smirked. “Pretty indeed.” He took a step closer to Reno. “Do most of you resort to this? To keep your mind off of what my father makes you do?”

“You wanna kill the mood, pretty boy?” Reno’s gaze was focused squarely on Rufus’ bottom lip. “We’ve all got our vices. You’re here so you can snort a few lines and blow your load and end up in some magazine, which will piss daddy right off, won’t it?”

Without warning, Rufus gripped Reno’s hair at the base of his skull where his ponytail was, yanking his neck back at a sharp angle. “Maybe you should watch your tongue, Turk.”

“Yeah?” Reno grimaced against the tight grip. “You gonna make me? Cause I’d like that.”

Rufus let go with an irritated huff. He glanced back at his ‘friends’, then turned his attention to Reno. “Get up. Come with me.”

Reno didn’t have to be told twice. He scrambled off the bar stool so fast he nearly fell flat on his face, straightening up and attempting to look composed as he followed Rufus out of the club. The truth was, his heartbeat was pounding in his ears at the thought that he might have sex with Rufus fucking Shinra. That would be a great notch on the metaphorical bedpost.

Rude would never believe him.

Rufus led him to a waiting car, climbing inside and rolling up the partition between the driver and the back seat. As soon as it was up, Rufus had him pinned to the seat, crushing his lips against Reno’s and digging his fingers into Reno’s arms where he held them at his side.

Reno’s head swam for just a moment and then he opened his mouth against Rufus’, their tongues coming together. He could taste the whiskey Rufus had been drinking and found he kind of liked it. Rufus pressed his body flat against Reno’s and ground their hips together, which was enough to send a little bolt of pleasure straight between Reno’s legs.

Rufus moved his lips along Reno’s jaw to his neck and Reno took a few gulps of air before he said, “Man, this’ll piss your dad off huh?”

The response he got was a hand at his throat pressing lightly but insistently against his Adam’s apple and just barely cutting off his airflow. If it was meant to be a threat, it backfired, because it quickly brought him from half mast to fully erect.

“Oh,” Rufus breathed against his neck, grinding harder against him. “Enjoy that, did you?”

“What can I say?” Reno gasped. “I like what I like.”

Rufus squeezed a little harder and Reno moaned.

Reno was the kind of guy who was much more about the trip than the destination. Fucking was fantastic, but so was everything that led him there, so he was happy to lay there with Rufus Shinra’s body pressed against his, grinding against each other while they swapped spit for a while. Rufus was a great kisser, and he kept sucking on Reno’s neck and earlobes in a particularly fun way.

They were both definitely a little inebriated, but sometimes it was more fun that way.

Rufus seemed like he was in a little more of a hurry than Reno was. He kissed across Reno’s collarbone, pushed aside his shirt just enough to run his tongue over his nipple, but didn’t waste any time unbuttoning the shirt or removing his suit jacket. Instead, his hands went straight for Reno’s belt, unbuckling it and unzipping his pants, yanking them down his legs with a little help from Reno and letting them remain at his ankles. He cupped a hand against Reno’s erection through the fabric of his underwear and Reno arched his back to meet the touch. Then his underwear joined his pants and Rufus sat back on his legs to observe him.

“Now you gotta show me yours,” Reno said.

He sat up just enough to reach for Rufus’ pants, but Rufus swatted his hands away, unzipping his pants and shoving them down just past his ass. His cock was big. Bigger than Reno expected for someone built so svelte, but then, his body felt a lot more solid than he was expecting for as drawn as his waist was and as slight as he seemed walking around.

“Shit,” Reno huffed.

“Like what you see?” Rufus asked, echoing Reno’s earlier words.

Honestly, it was a little intimidating in its girth, but he wasn’t going to look a gift chocobo in the beak. He reached a hand out and gripped it at the base, stroking up and down the length of it a few times. Rufus moaned softly, but he was inpatient. It didn’t take long for him to swat Reno’s hand away again.

“Turn over,” he demanded.

“Sure thing. You want me to call you boss while you’re fucking me or what?” He rolled onto his stomach and arched his back so that his hips were raised off of the seat.

“Call me whatever you like.” There was the sound of a lid snapping open and then a cold, wet finger pressed against Reno’s asshole and slid inside.

“Ah,” Reno gasped, pressing his face against the seat and rocking his hips back to meet the thrust of Rufus’ finger. “VP?”

“If you want.”

“What do you want, pretty boy?”

Rufus’ curled Reno’s ponytail around his free hand and he leaned over him, yanking his hair just right as he whispered in his ear. “I want you to shut up.”

Reno laughed. “One request I can’t comply with, sorry boss.”

After a few seconds, Rufus slid a second finger inside of Reno, curling them to press against his prostate. Reno couldn’t help the moan that left his throat at this. His fingers curled against the edge of the seat. “ _Fuck me_.”

“Gladly.”

Rufus withdrew his hand, the bottle lid snapping open once again. Reno felt him shift behind him and then his cock was pressing against him, sliding inside of him a little at a time, slowly stretching him open. Fuck, but it was a big cock. It hurt for a few seconds, and then he hit that sweet spot and the only thing Reno could focus on was the pleasure.

“Fuck, right there,” he gasped.

“Like this?” Rufus asked, thrusting in and out of him at a steady pace so that his cock slammed against it every time he moved his hips.

Reno let out a wail, no longer capable of forming coherent words. The only sounds coming out of him were moans and gasps, all the air rushing from his lungs every time Rufus’ hips slammed against his ass. Rufus grunted as he moved, tugging lightly on Reno’s hair, which Reno would gladly admit he enjoyed.

“Shiva’s tits,” Reno hissed. “Oh _fuck_.”

Rufus leaned over him and, at that angle, Reno was not going to be able to hold it together much longer. He rolled his hips back to meet Rufus’ thrusts, both of them gasping and moaning against each other. Half of him was sure he was dreaming. He wished he had asked to record it, mostly to show Rude as proof, but he doubted Rufus would be up for that kind of thing.

Rufus gripped his hips, his fingers digging into the skin as he thrust harder and faster until all Reno could do was sit back and enjoy it. Rufus’ cock glided against Reno’s prostate again and that was it. Every nerve in his body fired at once and his cock throbbed. It was honestly too much once he came, Rufus still pounding into him. He was about to ask him to stop when his thrusts grew clumsy and he let out a long, low groan, spilling himself inside of Reno and sliding quickly out of him.

“ _Shit_ ,” Reno gasped.

He had gotten cum on his shirt and jacket, which was going to stain. The dry cleaning bill was worth the experience, he had to say.

Rufus was breathing heavily behind him. He tossed a handkerchief to Reno.

“That’s all I have, sorry.”

Reno stared at it. It had Rufus’ initials embroidered on it.

“You want it back when I’m done?” He laughed.

Rufus grimaced and pulled his pants up. “Keep it.”

Well, it was good proof for Rude anyway.

He cleaned himself up as best as he could and pulled his pants back up, leaning against the closed door and observing Rufus as he smoothed his hair back.

“Thanks for a good time, boss.”

Rufus glanced at him. “Yes. Thank you for the diversion. I didn’t get your name.”

“Not important,” Reno said, opening the door and sliding out of the car. “I’m sure I’ll see you around. And do me a favor?”

“What’s that?” Rufus cocked his head.

“Don’t tell Tseng about this. I know you two are like this.” He crossed his fingers and Rufus frowned.

“That glorified babysitter? What business is it of his?”

Reno laughed loudly. “See you around, boss.”

He shut the door and waltzed off down the sidewalk, lighting a cigarette as he made his way back to his apartment. This was an evening for the books if there ever was one. He knew Veld and Tseng wouldn’t find out because Rufus surely wouldn’t ever admit to anyone that he had fucked a Turk. But he could tell Rude, even if Rude would undoubtedly not want to hear about it.

When he reached his apartment, he took a quick shower and fell onto the bed naked. Before he went to sleep, he sent a single text to Rude.

“You’ll never believe who I fucked tonight.”


	2. Rude

If you asked Rude what the best perk of his job as a Turk was, he would have readily answered: the Shinra Tower employee gym. The gym was stocked with every possible piece of equipment he could need, open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and typically empty at the times Rude was looking for some stress relief.

While Reno dealt with his problems by drinking, fucking, and taking a nap (not always in that order), Rude found the best way to work out his frustration was with a good run and some weightlifting. Sometimes it irritated him how Reno could drink and smoke and eat like shit and still be in halfway decent shape, able to clamber up the side of buildings Rude could never dream of scaling, but at the end of the day he also found it endearing. They had been partners from day one of academy - Rude had long since gotten used to all of Reno’s quirks.

Still, it was nice to have a break from him sometimes and he enjoyed the quiet solitude of the employee gym in the early hours of the morning when the sun had not yet risen. He took up a spot by the windows that looked out on Sectors 3 and 4, set a brisk pace, and just ran.

No matter how he went about it, Rude enjoyed working up a sweat. On a mission, it got his blood pumping, though he never went looking for fights in quite the way Reno did. Reno preferred to work up a sweat in other ways and made no secret of how prolific he was in that arena. Rude had never been one for one-night stands, but he could appreciate that sex was another fun way to get your heart racing. Reno had broached the subject with him in less direct terms more than once and the truth of the matter was Rude _wanted_ to. He was overly fond of his partner, right down to every last irritating quirk, but that kind of fraternizing seemed like a bad idea.

It didn’t stop him from thinking about it with increasing frequency these last few months.

Reno’s advice would have been to get it out of his system with somebody, anybody, and that was sounding more appealing by the day. It had been embarrassingly long since Rude had been physical with anyone. Frankly, the closest he came most days was Reno’s regular physicality, which was hardly overtly sexual.

He considered this as he ran, his sweat beading on his forehead, his heartbeat racing. And he also considered how close he was to breaking his own rules and kissing Reno just to see how it felt.

Maybe he would go to the bar in Sector 2 that he and Reno frequented and make a move on the cute waitress who worked there. The more rational part of his brain knew a substitute for what he truly wanted would just leave him wanting it that much more, but he _had_ to get Reno off of his mind.

After half an hour on the treadmill he slowed to a halt and crossed the room to the free weights. As he was setting them up for a quick session, the door the gym slid open and he turned to greet whoever had entered with a curt nod, surprised to find the vice president standing in the doorway looking awkward in a tank top and exercise shorts. He had a thin frame and for an unfortunate moment Rude considered how similar his build was to Reno’s: slight, but toned, though he was not quite as tall or wiry as Reno.

“Sir,” Rude said, straightening his posture. He felt ridiculous in his own workout attire in front of someone so high-ranking.

Rufus glanced at him, looking him up and down appraisingly. “You look familiar. What department are you in?”

“Administrative research, sir,” Rude answered quickly.

“Oh. A Turk. What’s your name?”

“Rude, sir.”

“Gods, you sound like Tseng,” he drawled, crossing the room and stepping onto a treadmill. Rude took that as a compliment. Tseng was second-in-command and someone Rude strove to emulate in his own work. “You really don’t need to punctuate every sentence with sir.”

“Uh…sorry,” and Rude was careful not to add ‘sir’ to the end of his statement.

Rude watched him run and recalled Reno’s tall tale from several years prior that he and the vice president had had sex in the back of a car outside an upper plate club. His only proof had been a handkerchief embroidered with the initials R.S., but Rude didn’t think that was much proof at all. To this day he didn’t _really_ believe Reno, but he played along with it whenever he recounted the story to someone else.

Without looking away from Rufus for too long, Rude began lifting weights. He caught the vice president staring at him in the reflection of the window…or was he just imagining it? Better to look away and avoid his gaze and stop mentally comparing every inch of his exposed skin to Reno’s. Both of them had pale freckles covering their arms though, an attribute Rude enjoyed an inordinate amount.

“Is it usually this quiet down here?” Rufus asked after several minutes of silence.

“At this hour, yes.” Rude wondered what brought the vice president down to the employee gym when he surely had his own private gym back at his apartment.

“I’ve never actually been inside this place,” Rufus continued talking. “But the treadmill in my own gym is broken and my security detail won’t let me go for a run out on the streets.”

“Probably wise, sir.”

Rufus scoffed. “Tseng’s the one who suggested I come here. Do you work closely with him?”

“Sometimes. Usually I work with my partner,” Rude answered. He set his weight down and sat down on a bench to towel some sweat from his face. A thin sheen of sweat had formed on Rufus’ skin and he seemed to glow beneath the fluorescent lighting.

“Does Tseng have a partner?” Rufus asked.

Rude was aware that Tseng was frequently assigned to the vice president’s security detail. He was also aware that Tseng found the vice president…difficult to deal with on most occasions. But the two men had known each other for several years - he was a little surprised Rufus didn’t know more about Tseng.

“No. He works alone.”

“No great surprise,” Rufus rolled his eyes. “Who would want to work with someone like him anyway? Does he always act like he has a stick up his ass or is it just with me?”

Rude balked at the question and struggled to think of a diplomatic answer. It was true that Tseng could be…severe. He wouldn’t have used quite the same words that Rufus did.

“I, uh…”

“Oh, right. He’s technically your boss isn’t he? Never mind. So all the Turks must know each other pretty well I would imagine?” Rufus slowed his treadmill to a walking pace.

“Most of us do.”

“Do you know Reno?”

“Reno’s my partner,” said Rude, surprised to hear Rufus mention his name.

Rufus laughed. “Funny. I just learned his name a few months ago when I ran into him in the hallway.”

He stepped off the treadmill and turned to face Rude. For a moment, Rude felt like a specimen being observed under a microscope. He met Rufus’ gaze and held it despite its intensity, comparing him to Reno once again. Both of them had blue eyes, but Rufus’ were an icy grey where Reno’s were all warmth.

“Do you usually wear sunglasses?” Rufus asked.

Rude nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“That’s it then. I _have_ seen you around the halls, I just didn’t quite recognize you without the sunglasses.” His eyes flicked up and down Rude’s body. “You have beautiful eyes, you ought to show them off more.”

Rude’s face grew warm. “Thank you, sir.”

Rufus took a few steps toward Rude. “Are there showers in this gym?”

“Of course, sir.” Rude’s heart was pounding irrespective of his workout. He let his gaze wander down Rufus body, glistening with sweat, and imagined it was Reno’s.

Fraternizing with the _boss_ was an even stupider idea than fraternizing with Reno. But Rufus was looking at him like he wanted to eat him alive. Rude was far from conceited - Reno had enough unwarranted confidence for the both of them - but he knew desire when he saw it in someone else’s eyes.

“Care to show me where they are?” Rufus asked, taking another step closer. “Only if that’s your preference, of course.”

“…Sir?”

Rude was being willfully obtuse. Rufus’ meaning couldn’t have been clearer. And with his heart pounding and thoughts of Reno racing through his mind Rude was unfortunately very strongly considering the offer.

“Nothing personal,” Rufus glanced at him with heavy-lidded eyes. “I just haven’t had much time to get out lately and I’m looking for nothing more than a quick release of tension. If you want to help me with that, you can.” He let his gaze linger on Rude’s chest. “You have a nice body. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of it. That’s all. I promise I won’t tattle on you.”

Now that Rude thought of it, Rufus _had_ been out of the public spotlight in the last year or so. His face used to grace the cover of every cheap tabloid with ridiculous stories about his debauchery. Recently though, most of the news Rude heard about Rufus was through Tseng, and most of it was bland information at best.

Rude understood his sentiment though. He too was eager to release some tension and it would be easy enough to imagine it was Reno he was kissing and touching, which was what he truly wanted. So without answering the more direct question, he stepped past Rufus and said,

“The showers are this way, sir.”

“Very good.”

Rufus followed him down the hall into the empty locker room, where Rude glanced at the clock on the wall to gauge just how much time they had before other employees were likely to turn up. Rufus set his gym bag down on the floor, stripped out of his clothes, and walked away behind the lockers to where the showers were. All Rude could do was gape at his backside as he disappeared around the corner.

It was doubtful that Reno’s ass was quite that round.

One of the showers started running and Rufus called, “What’s the matter? Cold feet?”

In fact, Rude was having a difficult time willing himself forward now that the reality of the situation was sinking in. But he wanted to do it, mostly for the release, but a little bit for the story of it. There was no one to tell of course, except maybe Reno, who would only say Rude was lying because Rude had never believed his own story.

Maybe Reno _had_ been telling the truth. Rufus had a reputation for flirting with danger and who in Shinra was more dangerous than a Turk?

For some reason the thought of Rufus Shinra kissing Reno enraged him so thoroughly that he managed to propel himself forward, pulling off his clothes and stepping into the shower stall where Rufus stood letting the water pelt down on his chest while he stroked himself.

“I thought maybe you changed your mind,” he greeted him.

To which Rude responded by forcing him against the wall of the stall and bringing their lips together in a rough kiss, digging his fingers into the flesh of Rufus’ ass as he pressed their bodies together. He had stepped over the line in more ways than one and for a fleeting moment he worried that Rufus was going to chastise him for such an aggressive move, but he only opened his mouth against Rude’s, sliding his tongue past Rude’s lips and moaning into his mouth.

Rude pressed him harder against the stall wall and Rufus let his hands stray across the muscles of Rude’s chest and abdomen, breaking away from their kiss and craning his neck to expose it to Rude. He took the hint, trailing his kisses down Rufus’ neck and gripping his cock at the base. That too was difficult for him to compare to Reno - whether he wanted to at the time or not, he knew what Reno looked like and his dick wasn’t that big. Still, he could imagine it was Reno’s sharp hip that he was gripping as he stroked Rufus from base to tip and kissed across his collarbone.

“ _Ah_ ,” Rufus gasped.

Rude kept his eyes closed, kissed across Rufus’ shoulders, and put the image of Reno in his mind. Every time Rufus moaned, Rude imagined it was Reno, even though the timbre was technically too low. It took no time then, imagining Reno as Rufus’ hands explored his body, before Rude was hard too.

“Enough,” Rufus said firmly, gripping Rude’s wrist to stop his movements. Rude’s eyes snapped open and he let go of him.

“Sir?” It felt stupid to address him as sir when he had just been holding his cock, but what else was he going to call him? The idea of addressing the vice president by his name felt equally absurd. Even Tseng didn’t call him that, and he knew him better than any of the Turks.

Rufus reached to the soap tray where he had set a small bottle of lube. He squeezed some into his hand and took hold of Rude without any warning or fanfare, gliding his hand up and down the length of him.

“You’re big everywhere, aren’t you?” He grinned.

Rude might have rolled his eyes at that, but he was too distracted by his boss’ hand stroking up and down his cock.

Rufus kissed him once more, still stroking him, then he let go and turned around, bracing his hands against the side of the shower stall.

“Whenever you’re ready,” he purred.

It was better this way - not looking each other in the eyes - easier to pretend it was who he really wanted it to be. What was he going to do with himself? Reno had been occupying his thoughts for months, but this was the worst it had ever been: imagining him while he was with another man.

He grabbed the lube and slid a slicked up finger inside of Rufus, kissing his shoulder while he worked his finger in and out of him. Rufus let out a low moan and arched his back.

“That’s it,” he gasped. “Right there.”

Rude moved his kisses to his neck and closed his eyes again. He could picture perfectly the way Reno might bend to meet his touch, the way he might gasp his name and beg for more in that whiny voice he put on when he really wanted something from Rude. The thought made him ache.

“I appreciate your attentiveness,” Rufus said after a few minutes. “But I’m inpatient.”

As long as he was ready, that was enough for Rude. He positioned himself behind Rufus and sank inside of him slowly, gauging his movement by swelling of Rufus’ chest as he inhaled sharply. Then he thrust his hips a few times until he found a pace and a rhythm that drew a moan out of Rufus with every thrust and he held himself steady, gripping Rufus’ hips and burying his face in the crook of his neck.

It felt _too_ good, that tight heat clenching around him as he moved. And he liked the sounds Rufus made - which were both exuberant and varied - even if it made it just a little harder to imagine it was Reno. Reno would have been just as noisy though - maybe that was why he liked it so much: he had a soft spot for loudmouths.

Rufus arched his back to meet Rude’s thrusts, grunting and moaning and letting out all manner of expletives. While one hand gripped Rufus’ hip, Rude let his other brush across his chest, squeezing at his nipple and moving down his abdomen. And he imagined it was Reno’s delicate ribs his fingers were splayed across, moving lightly over the curve of them to his stomach and down between his legs. He could picture his pale skin, the dip of his navel, the curve of his hips.

What the fuck was wrong with him?

His fingers curled around Rufus’ cock and stroked him in rhythm with his thrusts and a strangled sound left Rufus’ throat, as though it were too much for him.

Rude never talked much during sex. Well, he never talked much at all. He only really spoke when he felt he had something worth saying, but he didn’t mind someone filling the silence, which was why Reno had been such a good foil to his own stoicism. He supposed Veld knew what he was doing when he partnered them up. At any rate, he didn’t know quite what to say in response to the noises Rufus was making, so he just grunted every time Rufus’ muscles clenched around him, and otherwise remained silent.

“Oh _fuck_ ,” Rufus huffed. “I’m gonna cum… _fuck_.”

Rude thrust just a little harder and faster, because he was close too and it would be better if they could finish together. He nipped at the skin of Rufus’ neck as he moved, one hand still stroking him, focusing solely on the pleasure mounting between his thighs.

Rufus came with a moan and, to Rude’s enormous surprise, a solitary word left his mouth:

“ _Tseng!_ ”

It was almost enough to throw him off his rhythm, but his own orgasm followed so closely that he didn’t really have time to process it. He pressed his face against Rufus’ neck, squeezed his eyes shut, and came inside of Rufus with a groan.

“ _Reno!_ ” He heard himself say, though he was hardly aware of saying it.

For a moment he remained pressed against Rufus, both of them breathing heavily and covered in a sheen of water from the still-running shower head. Then Rude peeled himself off of Rufus and stepped back, rinsing himself off beneath the water and leaning against the opposite wall of the stall.

Rufus turned to face him. Neither of them would address saying someone else’s name, of course, because the situation was absurd enough and Rude didn’t plan on discussing any of it once he was out of that shower stall. Rufus rinsed himself off wordlessly.

“That was _much needed_ ,” he said. “Thank you for the stress relief.”

“Anytime, sir,” Rude said, cringing as the words left his mouth. ‘ _Anytime_ ’? No. It had been enjoyable, but he never wanted to do this again.

Rufus laughed. “Right. I’m sure I’ll see you again at some point. You Turks are always hovering around. Tell Reno I said hello.” He stepped out of the stall and shut the door behind him.

Rude remained standing under the running water for a long time after. He wasn’t quite as rule-abiding as Tseng, but the rule he had broken just now was something he would rather not repeat. But beyond the regret of such a gross breach of protocol, even if it _was_ enjoyable and he had probably needed it badly, was a lingering sadness he didn’t want to dwell on.

The truth was, he was falling for Reno and he didn’t know how to deal with it. Reno was his best friend and they worked so closely together that he was terrified of what might happen if they did cross that line. But he couldn’t stop thinking about him and sex with someone else just made him realize how badly he wanted the actual thing.

How was he even supposed to have a serious conversation about it with Reno, who didn’t take anything seriously?

It was a problem for another day. Stepping out of the shower, he toweled himself off and changed into his uniform.

He had work to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aw Rude :( you caught feelings. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! I'll have the next chapter up........whenever!


	3. Elena

Elena’s alarm went off at four AM precisely every morning and she was out of bed within seconds. She never wasted a moment of her morning, setting about her routine with a meticulousness that served her well in her job. In fact, more than once she had received high praise from Tseng for her attention to detail, something she wore like a badge of honor, even if it did make Reno turn up his nose at her and mock her behind her back.

As the youngest Turk ever promoted to executive, she knew she had an uphill battle with the other executives in order to prove herself. But Tseng had chosen her for a reason and it wasn’t her job to prove to Reno that she was more than just some green-behind-the-ears rookie.

She still doubted herself most of the time - all the more reason to hold Tseng’s praise close to her heart.

The truth was, she had an unprofessional crush on her superior. It was just so hard _not_ to. He was so tall and toned, with the most stunning face she’d ever seen, and a curtain of the silkiest black hair on Gaia. She could have spent hours staring at him, and more than once she let her eyes stray to his desk while she was doing paperwork. She wasn’t _just_ physically attracted to him, though - she was attracted to his intellect. He was a cunning and thoughtful leader, one she was happy to work under.

Once she had showered, blow-dryed her hair, ironed her suit, and dressed, she made herself a cup of tea in a travel mug and headed out the door at a brisk pace to make the walk to Shinra Tower in Sector 0. She always arrived to work by six, but she was running a little early that morning and she looked forward to some extra time alone with Tseng before Reno and Rude arrived.

There was no logical endpoint to her crush. Tseng was too professional to cross that line with one of his employees even if she _had_ mustered up the courage to ask him. She often worried she was too obvious in her affection.

She entered the building, flashing her badge at the security guards and puffing up with the same sense of pride she got every morning: she was an executive Turk - very few people at Shinra had higher security clearance than she did.

As she stepped into the elevator, her foot caught on the threshold and she lurched forward, spilling half of her tea onto her suit and staining part of her crisp white shirt.

“Oh, _fuck_ ,” she hissed.

But there was nothing to be done about it.

She stomped down the hall when the doors opened on her floor and stood before the door to the office trying unsuccessfully to blot some of the tea out with the tissues she kept in her purse. She was close to giving up when she heard voices sound on the other side of the door and, despite _knowing_ she shouldn’t eavesdrop, she stepped closer to the door to listen.

Tseng was always in the office at all hours of the day (she was almost certain he slept there most nights), but she had never seen anyone else in the office this early before.

“You know I have no say in the matter,” Tseng said.

The next voice that spoke was one Elena recognized as the vice president’s, though she had never met him personally. She was aware he and Tseng knew each other quite well.

“The situation is just absurd.” The vice president sounded irritated. “Indefinite house arrest? But he still plans on parading me in front of everyone at the company party next week.”

Tseng sighed, “It sounds precisely like something your father would do.” He paused for a moment. “Perhaps you should consider the silver linings.”

“And what would that be?” The vice president scoffed.

“Boundless time to consider your own plans,” Tseng answered, and if Elena didn’t know better, she would have thought there was a _playful_ tone to his voice. “Besides, he’s putting the Turks in charge of overseeing your _extended stay_. Perhaps some leeway can be given in regards to the rules.”

The vice president laughed. “Is he giving you the keys to my ankle bracelet then?”

Tseng laughed too. “Something like that.”

“Well, your point stands. I _will_ have plenty of time to consider my own plans. I hope you don’t mind if I solicit your input from time to time. You’re smarter than I am after all.”

“Don’t do that, Rufus.” Tseng said more severely. It was perhaps the most surprising part of the conversation as far as Elena was concerned. She had never heard Tseng refer to any of his superiors by anything other than ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’.

“I was mostly joking.”

“If you want my help, you have it.”

A prolonged silence followed and Elena decided it was time to step in. It was almost six and she wasn’t going to be late, especially when the reason was eavesdropping on a conversation that was none of her business. She scanned her badge against the card reader and opened the door, bracing herself to have to look _the_ vice president directly in the eyes when thus far her entire knowledge of him was second hand.

Both Tseng and the vice president looked up as she stepped in and Elena allowed herself one quick glance at the vice president before nodding politely. He sat on the couch with his foot resting on his opposite thigh, greeting Elena with a smirk and exchanging a glance with Tseng, who pursed his lips.

“Elena, good morning,” he said. “I don’t believe you’ve met the vice president before?”

“No, sir,” Elena answered quickly. She looked at him once more and found his gaze too intense to hold. He was remarkably good looking.

She really wished she didn’t have tea all down the front of her shirt.

“Mr. Vice President,” said Tseng. “This is our newest executive. She was promoted after I was given my current role.”

The vice president rose to his feet and extended his hand to Elena, who took it too readily and shook it with a far firmer grip than she meant to.

“Nice to meet you, sir.”

“The pleasure’s all mine, Elena.” He smiled and Elena felt her cheeks warm despite herself.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she said.

“The vice president was just leaving,” Tseng said firmly.

They exchanged another glance and the vice president nodded. “I was. I look forward to working with you, Elena.” He stepped past her and made his way out the door.

“He seems…nice,” Elena cleared her throat as she took a seat at her desk.

Tseng looked down at his paperwork. “Looks can be deceiving.”

Elena watched Tseng while she waited for her computer to boot up, his brow furrowing as he read the document in front of him. It simply wasn’t fair for him to be _that_ handsome. She felt like an idiot for fawning over him the way she did. She wasn’t this doe-eyed or ditzy with other men - in fact she had no trouble talking to men she was interested in normally and had done fairly well for herself. What _was it_ about Tseng that turned her into such a lovesick fool?

Better not to dwell on it. She turned back to her computer just in time to avoid being noticed by Tseng.

* * *

It was Elena’s first time being invited to one of the classy company parties thrown by the President every few months. She had heard plenty about them from her sister, and then again from Reno, but she had never had the opportunity to attend one before now. While Reno had given her plenty of bad advice: ‘Wear a really low cut strapless dress, put on a lot of makeup, and flash your tits’ - Tseng’s advice had been more professional: ‘Wear something nice, but not your suit. Partake in the free food and alcohol, but not too much. When in doubt, do the opposite of whatever Reno is doing’.

In the end, she decided on a long-sleeved red dress she bought ages ago but never had a good excuse to wear. As she sat in front of the mirror straightening her hair and applying her makeup, her only thoughts were of Tseng. Maybe he would look at her differently dressed like this, outside of her utilitarian work uniform. Maybe, just maybe, it would make him think twice about her - that was all she really wanted, all she could hope for.

She arrived on the 70th floor of Shinra Tower promptly at the party’s stated start time of eight PM to find very few others were there yet. The President’s large office, normally off limits, had been converted into a party hall of sorts, with buffet tables along the windows lined with food, bars on either side of the room, and a large open space for dancing with high-top tables around the perimeter to set drinks and food on.

The President was already there, chatting with Scarlet, who was wearing a dress Elena could only describe as trashy. The Turks didn’t have a fantastic working relationship with Scarlet, mostly thanks to Reno and his loud mouth, but Elena had thankfully had very limited interaction with her.

A few other employees milled about, eyeing the buffet tables, uncertain if they could approach before the President did. Elena was surprised, and a little pleased, to see the vice president amongst those who had arrived early. He stood by one of the windows, dressed in a crisp white suit, looking out at the sunset with a drink in his hand. She didn’t know anyone else there to chat with, since her colleagues had not yet arrived. She was tempted to go over and speak to him, but felt certain she would be rebuffed for even daring to look at him.

Then again, Reno said he had a soft spot for the Turks.

Summoning her courage, Elena grabbed a champagne flute from the buffet table and walked over to where the vice president stood. She cleared her throat and he looked away from the window to glance down at her, the corners of his lips turning upward as he did so.

“Hello, sir,” she said, trying not to sound timid.

What was it about her handsome superiors that made her such a mousy ditz?

“Elena, wasn’t it?” He turned fully away from the window and took a sip of his drink.

“That’s right, sir.”

He waved his hand dismissively. “Please. We’re at a party. You can just call me Rufus.”

Elena’s face warmed at the thought of addressing any superior by their first name. Still, she felt he wouldn’t talk to her for much longer if she didn’t listen, so she nodded. “Rufus.”

“You clean up nicely, Elena. That dress suits you far better than a tea-stained shirt.”

Her cheeks flushed. “Oh…thank you,s…er, Rufus.”

“Is this your first time at one of these parties?”

She nodded and took a large gulp of her champagne. She needed more alcohol in her system to try and hold a conversation with one of the most famous men on the planet, one she had grown up watching on TV and reading about in magazines.

“They can be fun sometimes.” Rufus sounded bored. “But mostly they’re just a way for my father to stroke his own ego. The free alcohol is nice, mostly because it’s fun watching the executives drink too much and make fools of themselves kissing my father’s ass.” He laughed. “Except Tseng. He never indulges.”

“He’s too professional for that,” Elena said.

As if on queue, the elevator doors slid open and Tseng stepped out. He was in a conversation with Director Tuesti, wearing a sharp tuxedo, his beautiful hair pinned back at the sides and a stunning white windflower tucked in his breast pocket. Elena simply couldn’t take her eyes off of him. She didn’t think it was possible for him to be any more attractive than he already was, but somehow he had outdone himself.

Rufus chuckled beside her and she jumped. She had forgotten herself for a moment.

“Do you have a little crush on the boss, Elena?” He smirked and she grew so hot, she was sure her face was crimson.

“I-,I-” She stuttered.

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell.” He took another sip of his drink.

“Am I that obvious?” She asked in barely more than a whisper.

Rufus shook his head. “You’re hardly the only one who acts like that when he walks in the room. He acts completely oblivious to it too. He walks down the hall and half the people he passes turn to stare and he doesn’t even notice. Well,” Rufus laughed, “he probably does because he’s Turk. He just pretends he doesn’t. Don’t feel too badly,” he added. “It must be quite hard working for him.”

Elena thought privately that it was just as hard working for someone as handsome as Rufus, though his beauty didn’t quite compare to Tseng’s as far as she was concerned.

“It’s foolish anyway,” Elena said. “Just a silly crush.”

Rufus fixed her with an inscrutable expression. He looked almost…sad. Just as quickly, he looked away, a smile brightening his face as Tseng approached them. Elena knocked back the rest of her champagne and reached for another.

Tseng stood next to Rufus and nodded cordially to Elena, “You look lovely this evening, Elena,” he said.

This made her head spin. “So do you,” she said stupidly. “Er, I mean…you like nice, sir.” Gods, why was she such a fucking idiot around him? He must have thought she was an incompetent fool sometimes. Maybe he regretted promoting her.

“Sir,” Tseng nodded to Rufus.

“Not here,” Rufus said softly. “I was just telling Elena, I’d rather just be called by my name this evening, if it’s all the same.”

Tseng frowned. A moment of silence passed before he spoke. “Was I interrupting a conversation?”

“No,” Elena said, perhaps too quickly.

Tseng and Rufus exchanged a glance Elena couldn’t quite parse, but she didn’t have much time to dwell on it because suddenly an arm was around her shoulder, yanking her sideways.

“LANEY!” Reno practically yelled, ruffling the hair she had spent thirty meticulous minutes straightening.

He looked typically disheveled, this time in a slightly nicer suit than his work uniform, though his shirt was still unbuttoned practically to his navel. Rude stood next to him looking exasperated.

“He took two shots before we came,” he explained.

Tseng pursed his lips. “Reno. If you could _not_ cause a scene this time, that would be appreciated.”

“Relax, Tseng,” said Rufus, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing.

Elena stared at this interaction while Reno continued to jostle her, forcing a second drink in her hand while he knocked back a glass of something red in two gulps and slammed his glass on a nearby table.

“What are you doing talking to these bozos anyway? No offense, boss.” He added this last part with a grin, which Tseng met with his typical disappointed frown, then he _winked_ at Rufus, who sighed and curled his lip.

“What’d’ya say, Laney? Let’s go cut the rug.” Reno hooked elbows with Elena and Rude and dragged them both onto the dance floor. Elena chanced one glance back at Rufus and Tseng, who turned to each other in quiet conversation, Tseng staring daggers at Reno while they talked.

“Reno,” Rude said, holding his shoulder. “Wait at least half an hour before you have another drink.”

“Okay, mother.”

Rude frowned and turned to Elena. “Are you enjoying the party?”

“Uh…yeah, I think so,” she answered uncertainly.

She kept looking back at Tseng and Rufus while she danced half-heartedly with Reno. What Reno was doing couldn’t really be described as dancing, per se, but he certainly was moving his limbs erratically. Rude shuffled awkwardly beside him, watching with a mixture of awe and disappointment.

“These shindigs are just a bunch of bloated self-important idiots yanking each other off,” Reno said loudly. “But the food is good and the booze is free, so it’s usually worth it. What’re you looking at?” He jerked his head in the direction Elena was looking and turned on her with a sly grin. “Checking out the goods, huh?”

“Shiva’s tits, Reno,” she hissed.

“We all know you have a big fat crush on the boss. It’s fine. Who _hasn’t_ thought about Tseng fucking them, you know?” He belched loudly and Rude grimaced.

“I haven’t,” Rude said.

“Well, you don’t count.” Reno waved his hand dismissively. “You want to know a secret, Laney?” Reno slung his arm around her shoulder amiably. “Whenever Tseng yells at me for breaking a rule, I sit there and imagine him bending me over his desk and fucking me ‘til I scream. Then I go home and work it out with myself. You should try it, it’ll help you get past it.”

“Do you seriously do that?” Rude balked.

Reno slung his other arm around Rude and grinned at him. “Well…now I come over to your place and let you do it for me.”

Rude’s mouth fell open and Elena gaped at the two of them. “Are you two…?” She gasped.

“Whoops,” Reno chuckled, dropping his arm from her shoulder, but still holding Rude’s. “Cat’s out of the bag. Listen, Laney, don’t tell the boss.”

“I wouldn’t,” she promised, still staring at them. “But…are you really?”

In a weird way, it gave her hope that maybe it wasn’t impossible that one day she and Tseng might have a relationship beyond the professional boundaries of supervisor and subordinate. Reno was technically Rude’s superior by virtue of being second-in-command, though they were also work partners, so she knew it wasn’t really the same. Anything that gave her hope to cling to was worth protecting, though.

“It’s complicated,” Rude answered.

“Pfft,” Reno snorted. “No it’s _not_. We’re fucking.”

“Tactful as usual, Reno,” Rude sighed.

They bickered for a moment and Elena turned her gaze back to Tseng and Rufus, who seemed to be having an argument themselves, though not one she would describe as heated. Rufus’ brow furrowed as Tseng said something to him, then Tseng turned away and crossed the room to discuss something with Director Tuesti. Rufus looked annoyed. He grabbed another drink and stepped outside onto the roof.

Elena couldn’t explain what made her do it, but she stepped away from Reno and Rude, grabbed a drink for herself, and followed Rufus out onto the roof.

She found him seated in an alcove tucked well out of view of the party, looking out at the twinkling lights of the city while he sipped his drink moodily.

“Oh,” she said, pretending she hadn’t specifically left to look for him. “I was just coming out for some fresh air, I’ll-”

“No need,” Rufus shook his head, scooting over to make space for her. “Join me if you like. I was just getting some air myself.” He didn’t _sound_ irritated, though he had certainly looked it when he left the party.

She sat down hesitantly. The space was small enough that she was forced to brush legs with Rufus as she sat, bunching her knees up and sipping on her drink. She felt suddenly quite warm despite the cool breeze.

“Reno get to be too much for you?” Rufus asked.

“Almost always.”

Rufus laughed at this and Elena watched him. He _was_ attractive, especially his eyes. She found herself comparing him to Tseng, but she would find anyone lacking in comparison. Why was she so damn head-over-heels for her boss? She was sharing a tight space with the _very_ handsome vice president of the company and all she could think about was Tseng.

“Did you and Tseng have an argument?” she asked, recognizing it was toeing the line.

“Not really,” Rufus laughed humorlessly. “Just…even at these parties he’s never allowed to turn off for the evening, you know? He had some business to discuss with Reeve and I told him he should just stay and relax, but he didn’t listen. That’s all.” He leaned back against the wall and took another sip of his drink.

“Sounds like Tseng.” She nodded.

Rufus looked sideways at her. “Elena?”

She met his gaze. There was a kindness to his eyes she hadn’t anticipated. “Hm?”

“About Tseng. He _is_ too professional for it. But he’s also gay.”

“Oh,” she said, because she couldn’t really think of anything else to say.

“You’re a pretty girl. I just don’t want you to hold out hope for something that wouldn’t ever happen.”

She wasn’t sure how she felt about it, honestly, but there was a small sense of relief. At least she hadn’t made a fool of herself trying to come onto him. It was still upsetting to think she would never have a chance, when only a few minutes earlier it felt like maybe there was some small glimmer of hope. She knew it wouldn’t stop her fawning over him either way. How pathetic.

“I appreciate you telling me,” she said. “It would have been really embarrassing if I had said something to him.”

“Well, Tseng would have let you down easy, I’m sure.” Rufus took a long swig from his drink and stared ahead with an unfocused gaze.

“Are you…all right?” Elena asked.

Rufus laughed. “No one ever asks me that besides Tseng.”

Elena thought back to Rufus’ hand on Tseng’s shoulder. “Are you two…?”

“No,” Rufus said firmly, shaking his head. “No, Tseng would never cross that line with anyone at this company.”

Silence followed, but she found it wasn’t uncomfortable, though she anticipated it would be. She barely knew Rufus - she hardly imagined this was where the evening would take her. There was a sense of melancholy about him that made her feel sorry for him, even though she was feeling equally morose. Maybe it was their commiserating that made it bearable to be around her superior like this.

“Can I tell you something?” Rufus asked.

“Of course.” She almost added ‘sir’ to the end of her sentence and thought better of it.

“I feel the same way about Tseng that you do.” She didn’t know how to respond to this, so she didn’t say anything. “I used to hate him. But he’s been the only real constant in my life for the last decade. I don’t know how it happened.” He let out a long, slow sigh. “Fucking pointless line of thought. He’d never cross that line even if he did feel the same.”

Elena knew it was more complicated than base attraction, but if Tseng was Rufus’ friend, as she suspected he was, she thought he was crazy _not_ to feel the same about him. He was handsome and charismatic…and apparently fairly nice too, she was learning. The thought of the two of them together was bittersweet.

Maybe it was the two drinks she had knocked back in quick succession, maybe it was having her dreams crushed by reality, or maybe she was just fucking sick of feeling like a ditzy blonde around her superiors, but for whatever reason, Elena placed her hand on Rufus’ thigh just above his knee and left it there. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears.

Rufus looked up at her. “Elena,” he said softly. “You’re beautiful, but-”

“Oh, fuck, don’t say ‘but’,” she sighed.

To her annoyance he laughed. He cupped her cheek with his hand and she was surprised that his fingertips were calloused. For some reason she had expected the soft hands of someone unused to hard labor.

“I don’t want you to think I’m taking advantage of you. My father has this propensity for tiny blondes like you and the last thing I want is to-”

Without thinking, she gripped the lapels of his suit jacket and crushed her lips against his, silencing him, at least momentarily. He pulled away with a stunned look on his face.

“With all due respect,” Elena said. “I’m making the decisions here.”

She climbed onto his lap, straddling him, and kissed him again and this time, he didn’t pull away, instead opening his mouth to hers and sliding his tongue against hers. She gripped his hair and pressed the line of her body against his, the heat quickly rising in her cheeks as one of his hands slid down to rest at the small of her back and the other moved up her thigh, sliding under the hem of her dress and pushing it up as it moved.

There was no need to pretend this was anything other than what it was. She was upset about Tseng. Some foolish, desperate part of her had truly hoped she might win his attention this evening and now she realized it had all been pointless from the start. Rufus was upset about him too. They were just taking out their feelings toward him with each other.

It was a gross breach of protocol, but with a few drinks in her system, reeling from the shock of it all, she just didn’t give a fuck.

She ground her ass down against his crotch and he moaned into her mouth, gripping her hips and jerking her suddenly against the opposite wall, sliding her down so that she was lying flat on her back. He sat back on his legs and stared at her, eyes ablaze.

“If you’re sure,” he said.

“Just do it already.”

He shoved her dress up past her hips and hooked his fingers in the sides of the lacy underwear she had picked up specifically for Tseng, as if he would ever see them. Rufus tossed them aside, braced her legs against his shoulders, and kissed a path up the inside of her thighs, causing her to squirm at the sudden realization of what he was doing.

His lips moved slowly and methodically up her thighs, nipping lightly at the skin as he moved closer and closer to where she wanted him. Her body seemed to vibrate with anticipation. It was too much to watch him, so she lay her head back and looked up at the sky and focused on the feeling of his fingers digging lightly into her hips, his lips and tongue moving against her skin.

He moved his fingers between her legs first, spreading her open, and then his head dipped between her legs and his mouth was against her clit, his tongue moving in slow, deliberate circles.

She let out a gasp and arched her back, reaching down to grip some of his hair tightly between her fingers. In response, his lips suctioned around her and her brain completely shut off for a few seconds as little bursts of pleasure shot up and down her spine.

This was one hell of a way to get over her heartbreak.

Rufus slid a finger inside of her while his lips and tongue moved against her clit and she couldn’t control the gasps leaving her throat, her hips jerking toward his touch, the pleasure rapidly mounting between her thighs. She honestly couldn’t remember the last time someone had gone down on her, but she was certain this was the best it had ever been. She moaned his name and arched her back as her orgasm hit in a wave of blinding pleasure, her muscles clenching around his finger as it curled inside of her. He didn’t stop, and another orgasm crashed over her and then it was too much.

“ _Ah…ah, stop_ ,” she gasped.

He sat up and stared down at her with a coy grin.

“Fuck.” She ran a hand through her hair and tried to catch her breath. Lying on the cold concrete of the Shinra Tower rooftop with her legs spread wide open in front of Rufus Shinra was not a scenario she would have imagined in her wildest dreams. She gave herself a few seconds to recover and then she sat up, pushing Rufus back against the opposite wall and kneeling between his legs while she unbuckled his pants.

She pulled his pants down to his ankles and sat on his thighs, rubbing her hand against the outline of his erection through the fabric of his boxers. His hips jerked and he moaned.

“Do you have a condom?” she asked.

“Ah. My pocket.”

She reached into his pants pocket and pulled the little square parcel out, then she hooked her fingers in the band of his underwear and pulled them down to join his pants around his ankles.

“ _Shiva’s tits_ ,” she didn’t mean to say it, but his dick was _huge_. Not so big that she was worried really, but wide enough around that it made her take pause.

“You’re not the first to say that,” he laughed.

At any rate, she was definitely glad he had warmed her up. She unwrapped the condom and rolled it into place, stroking up and down the length of him a few times and watching with a mixture of curiosity and delight as his eyelids fluttered and he let out a soft little moan. It was strange to think she was capable of doing something like that to the second most powerful man on Gaia.

Leaning forward, Elena straddled his lap, letting him grip her ass and guide her down where she sank on top of him slowly until their bodies were flush.

“Ah,” she gasped, clutching his shoulder and burying her face against his neck. She rolled her hips and rocked slowly against him, finding a position that seemed to do the trick for both of them and maintaining it for as long as she could.

“Do I feel good?” He whispered in her ear.

She raked her fingers through his hair and gripped the back of his neck. “ _Yes._ ”

“ _Fuck_ ,” he gasped. He thrust upward to meet her movement and she moaned into his skin. It felt impossibly good, partially (she knew) because it had been a little too long since she’d been properly fucked, but the size of his cock really wasn’t hurting anything.

He was noisier than any man she’d ever been with, though the volume of his noise was muted to avoid drawing any unwanted attention onto the roof. He groaned into her ear, moaned with every thrust of his hips, unintelligible sounds leaving his throat as he tilted his head back in ecstasy. After a few minutes of rolling her hips against him, gliding in time with him, his fingers dug into the flesh of her ass and he took over, holding her still and bucking his hips against her. He moved at such a punishing pace that it knocked the breath out of her and all she could do was drag her nails across the back of his neck and moan.

“ _Gods…fuck…_ ” She gasped.

His breath grew ragged as he pumped into her, his fingers digging so hard into her skin that it almost hurt. “ _I’m gonna_ …” he groaned. “ _Fuck…oh fuck_ …”

His rhythm faltered and he came with a long, low moan, lifting her up and off of him and letting her settle against his chest, both of them gasping for breath, sweaty and disheveled.

For several seconds they lay like that, as the reality of what they had done settled over them. Elena didn’t regret it. After all, countless women would have killed to be where she was in that moment, and how many Turks could say they had slept with the vice president?

Tseng would murder her…or possibly both of them, if he ever found out.

Eventually she peeled herself off of him and sat back against the opposite wall, pulling her underwear back on and adjusting her dress. Rufus pulled his pants back on and the two of them sat staring at each other for a few seconds.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I was just…letting out my feelings about Tseng with you and-”

“Gods,” Elena rolled her eyes. “What do you think I was doing? It’s fine. I think we both had a good time, didn’t we? For what it was.”

Rufus smirked. “Yes.”

She stood up and smoothed her hair back. “Not that I imagine you will, but if you could just…never mention this to Tseng… _ever_.”

“Cross my heart.”

She planned on returning to the party, but she hesitated at the edge of the alcove. “Is it true your father is putting you under house arrest?”

“Ah, you _are_ a Turk aren’t you?” He laughed. “Yes, it’s true. I’m sure Tseng will brief you on all of the details. The Turks are in charge of monitoring me, after all. We’ll be seeing a lot of each other over the next few years.” He looked her up and down. “Hope it’s not too awkward.”

“We can just pretend this never happened,” she suggested.

“Typical Turk response too. Go on, head back in. I’m going to stay out here a while longer. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you soon.”

“Good night…Rufus.”

She walked away, stepping back inside to find the room far more crowded than it had been when she left. Her spirits lifted thanks in large part to the multiple orgasms Rufus had given her on the rooftop, she grabbed another drink and joined Reno and Rude where they still stood on the dance floor. Reno was three sheets to the wind by now and hanging all over Rude, though he greeted Elena exuberantly and planted a very wet kiss on her cheek.

As she danced, putting the events of the evening in a tidy box in her mind and tucking them away to never think about again, Tseng’s voice sounded behind her.

“Elena.”

She nearly jumped out of her skin, whirling around to face him and spilling some of her drink on her dress.

“Oh fuck!” She growled. Quickly followed by, “Sorry, sir.” Tseng offered her a napkin and she took it, wiping away the spilled drink. “Um, sir…did you need me for something?” She held his gaze and found she felt just as flustered as before she knew it was a lost cause. There was no helping it, she supposed.

“Have you seen the vice president?”

Oh Gods, had he seen them on the roof? Did he know?

“Er…why?”

Tseng’s lips creased into a frown, but it was a look of concern on his face, not anger. “I haven’t seen him all evening. I got roped into a conversation with Director Tuesti, but I had hoped to chat with the vice president about a few things.” He glanced around, brow furrowed.

Elena relaxed. Maybe Rufus’ feelings weren’t quite as hopeless as her own.

“I think I saw him go out onto the roof, sir.”

There was a look of immediate relief on Tseng’s face. “Thank you, Elena. Enjoy your evening.”

“You too, sir!” She called as he turned and headed for the roof.

Reno wrapped an arm around her waist, his other arm seemingly permanently attached to Rude. “Where’d you disappear to for so long anyway, Laney?” he asked.

“Oh,” Elena laughed. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was so fun to write! I don't write Elena often but I'm starting to find a good voice for her so I think I might do it more. I also wanted to show a softer side to Rufus. I think he kind of feels for Elena because he knows what it's like to have these unrequited feelings for Tseng. But I also just headcanon that Rufus and Elena have a good friendly relationship so I wanted to work that in. I know Elena doesn't technically get promoted until after the plate fall but I always have and always will hc her as being promoted before the events of the game so. Here we are. I'll get crackin on the next chapter, which I'm most excited to write.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. Tseng

It was Tseng’s turn to oversee Rufus’ house arrest. The Turks had been assigned the job in what the President thought was a fitting bit of irony, but which really just served to further everyone’s goals except his own. Rufus had betrayed his father, and he had also helped spare the Turks’ lives. The President thought it would be an insult to both parties for the Turks to effectively babysit the man who saved their lives, but Tseng had been looking after Rufus long before he ever saved his life: as tasks assigned to a Turk went, it was easy work.

Technically, it was Reno’s turn - Tseng, Reno, Rude, and Elena cycled in and out of the apartment where Rufus was being held in Junon every two months - but Reno had been injured on assignment and was on paid leave for the next month, which left Tseng to take his place.

In truth, Tseng looked forward to the break from Midgar. It was far easier to get his non-field work done without someone constantly popping into his office demanding something of him, and besides that, he never minded spending time with Rufus: a sentiment he would never have imagined himself agreeing with when he was younger.

For nearly fifteen years Rufus had been a constant in his life, for better and for worse. They assigned Tseng to Rufus’ detail frequently because they were the same age and the President figured he would take more kindly to being babysat by a Turk if it was someone he might find common ground. But at fifteen, neither of them had anything in common. Tseng was steadfast and serious and felt slighted because he had joined the Turks for intriguing missions and been saddled with guard duty for a spoiled brat. Rufus was cocky and arrogant and tried to bully Tseng into quitting as if another Turk wouldn’t just take his place. What resulted was a relationship of thinly veiled hostility.

But it had been many years since Tseng felt that way about Rufus. As Rufus grew older, and realized who his true enemies were, he came to confide in Tseng. The truth was, Rufus had no one else to confide in because he had grown up isolated from any truly meaningful relationship. In this, they found their common ground. Tseng was cordial with his colleagues, but it was a stretch to suggest he had any real friends. Time and forced assignment coupled with the maturity that comes with age changed how Tseng viewed Rufus. He was his only true friend, and he showed the potential to be a truly great leader. At some point, though he couldn’t remember any discrete event that spurred it, Tseng had pledged his loyalty to Rufus and agreed to help him overthrow his father.

Years still had passed since that agreement. Tseng had made every effort to hide his camaraderie with Rufus, but the other Turks knew, and eventually they had been let in on the secret and pledged the same loyalty. They owed him as much for being spared.

Junon was dreary and cold when Tseng arrived. Autumn was in full swing and nowhere was the weather more consistently dour than in Junon. Rufus always seemed to enjoy it and Tseng had to admit it was a refreshing change of pace from the relative lack of weather in smoggy Midgar.

The penthouse apartment where Rufus had been under house arrest for the last three years was more luxurious and more expensive than the his condo in Midgar. Such a price came with a seaside view. When Tseng stepped inside, he found Rufus draped across a chaise facing the window in only a pair of sweatpants, a blanket laid over his legs and a drink in his hand. He craned his neck to look backward and did a poor job of hiding his surprise at Tseng’s presence. Once upon a time that surprise would have been a furrowed brow and pouting lip, but now his lips creased into a smile.

“I thought it was Reno’s turn.”

“He broke his leg on his last assignment,” Tseng said, setting his briefcase against the wall and slipping his shoes off. He pulled his suit jacket off, hanging it in the coat closet, and unbuttoned his sleeves, rolling them up to his elbows and loosening his tie as he crossed the room and sat in an armchair next to the chaise. “Well. I should say someone broke it for him.”

“His loss is my gain,” said Rufus. “Do you want something to drink?”

“I’ll get it myself when I do.”

Rufus rolled his eyes at this, but he settled back against the chaise.

“How was the flight in?”

“Fine. I dislike flying in the rain,” Tseng sighed. “But the weather wasn’t turbulent.”

He pulled his phone from his pocket and scrolled through his e-mail inbox. In the hour it had taken him to get from Midgar to Junon he had received twenty-three new messages, most of them from Heidegger. He replied to only the most urgent ones, brow knitting in irritation as he responded.

“Do you ever get a break?” Rufus asked.

“My job is my life.” He glanced up at Rufus. His grey eyes were fixed on Tseng and, though it was his job not to shirk away from uncomfortable situations, Tseng often found Rufus’ gaze too intense to hold for very long. There was always a questioning look about him, as though he were seeing something below the surface that Tseng kept heavily guarded. “You should understand,” he continued. “You’re almost always working on your own plans when I’m here.”

“True.” Rufus looked back out the window and sipped his drink. “But sometimes a break is necessary.”

Tseng laughed. “I don’t think I would know what to do with a break. Reno and Rude and Elena still take vacations, but…where would I go anyway?”

“Costa del Sol is lovely this time of year,” Rufus suggested.

“Hm,” said Tseng. “My body would be a terrifying sight on the beach.”

“I sincerely doubt that.”

“That’s because you’ve never seen me in direct sunlight. I’m so pale that I glow.”

Rufus rolled his eyes. “Always a surprise when you hazard a joke.”

“I wish I were joking.”

“I wouldn’t mind a little sunshine. I don’t mind the rain at all, but it’s been incessant.” Rufus slumped further down in his chaise and kicked the blanket off of his legs as he downed the rest of his drink. “I’m sick of being stuck here.”

“It’s almost over,” Tseng reminded him. “A few more months and then we can strike. The plans are all coming together.”

“A few months feels like a lifetime right now. Four years of being stuck in this apartment with only you and the guards as company. No offense. You know I like your company.”

Tseng shrugged. He took no offense to the statement at all. Rufus was a social butterfly, eager to hear himself talk, which he did to excellent effect at most parties. Tseng couldn’t sympathize with the desire, but he understood why Rufus was ready for his freedom. The last three years had been a lot of long, dull days in the apartment with the occasional allotment for a supervised walk around the city.

“Plus four years without sex,” Rufus huffed, letting his arm dangle over the side of the chaise, his fingers brushing the floor.

Tseng stared at him, his eyes scanning the lithe muscle of Rufus’ arms and chest. From the moment they met, Tseng had found him attractive, but any interest had been dashed the moment Rufus opened his mouth. The years together had drastically changed how Tseng felt about Rufus on a personal level, but he still found him physically stunning to look at. There was only so much to do with his time under house arrest and he had spent much of it training in his personal gym, sometimes under Tseng’s direction.

Tseng had studied every curve of Rufus’ bare skin when the two of them trained together and, though there was a sense of shame that went along with it, he had stowed it away in his memory and more than once had pleasured himself to the thought of it.

The problem was, of course, that Rufus was both his charge and technically still his superior. It was an egregious line to cross even if the last fifteen years had pushed him closer and closer to the edge of all reason regarding Rufus Shinra.

Rufus, for his part, though excellent at subtlety from a political standpoint, lacked the gentle touch he thought he had in demonstrating his affection for Tseng. Tseng hesitated to use a word as childish and pedestrian as ‘crush’, but that was what it was. For many years now, Rufus had been flirtatious and physical with Tseng in a way that was more overt than his usual physicality with anyone he was speaking to. It was Tseng’s job as a Turk to notice these things, of course, and he wasn’t overly concerned that anyone else within the company suspected, but he had chosen to largely ignore Rufus’ behavior because there was no other logical means of dealing with it.

He had known about Elena’s little infatuation too, but that seemed to have worked itself out without any intervention on his part.

Rather than rising entirely to Rufus’ bait, Tseng stood up and crossed the room to grab himself a beer from the bar; Rufus always kept a healthy stock of his favorite Wutaian beer.

“I would have thought Reno would lend you a hand with that,” he said casually, even as the mere thought of it caused an irrational flare of irritation in his chest.

“No, sadly not.” Tseng could feel Rufus watching him. “Surely you know what’s going on right under your nose, Tseng. I don’t believe you’re naive.”

“If you’re referring to his relationship with Rude-”

“It’s quite serious,” Rufus interrupted. “I think they’re in love.”

Tseng snorted. He was well aware that for several years Reno and Rude had been flagrantly violating company fraternization policies, but he had a hard time imagining Reno settling down into a state of monogamy with anyone. Rude he could certainly imagine might feel that way about Reno, but Reno in love?

Well, what the hell did Tseng know about love anyway?

“I have slept with Reno before, though,” Rufus said, and Tseng didn’t have to speculate that this was meant to get a rise out of him. He didn’t dignify it with any meaningful reaction though, popping the cap off of his beer and carrying it over to take a seat in his armchair once more.

“I would say you’re immune from the company rules, but…clearly not, considering your current predicament.”

Rufus smirked at this. “You aren’t at all curious?”

“No,” Tseng lied.

“Well, it was a long time ago. Nothing particularly noteworthy. Veld probably found out about it at some point. You and he are the same…nothing seems to get past you, even if you don’t let on that you know about it.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Tseng sipped his beer and stared at Rufus.

“And what would you say if I told you I’ve fucked all of your executives?” He held Tseng’s gaze with a fire in his eyes.

“What do you want me to say?” Tseng shrugged.

The fact of the matter was, it wouldn’t surprise him all that much. He already knew about Elena, though he had never mentioned it to either of them. It had been a surprise at the time, but easy enough to piece together. Elena had known Rufus was on the rooftop at the party just before his imprisonment because she had been with him. The discarded condom flung from view of the alcove where he found Rufus told the rest of the story. The surprise was that Rufus would cross a line with someone so obviously his father’s type, but it wasn’t Tseng’s place to pry further than that. He kept an eye on it and nothing more ever came of it, so it had hardly been worth mentioning.

Rufus swung his legs over the side of the chaise as he sat up. “Say what you feel, Tseng.”

“Your sex life isn’t my business.”

“Not even when it’s with your employees?”

Tseng took a long swig of his drink. “Nothing has happened since you were put under house arrest. That much I know definitively. So what does it matter what happened three or more years ago?”

He wasn’t speaking what he actually felt, which was the unpleasant green heat of jealousy welling in his chest. The thought of any of his employees touching Rufus like that when he had spent so long holding himself at bay because the risk felt too great…it wasn’t fair, and Tseng rarely allowed himself to feel such sentimental foolishness as lamenting over what was and wasn’t fair. He had successfully ignored Rufus’ interest in him, but it didn’t mean he hadn’t felt the same for many years now.

More than once after his turn was up in Junon he had returned to Midgar to seek out anyone who bore a passing resemblance to Rufus, and when he fucked them he closed his eyes and pretended it was what he really wanted, but it didn’t soothe the ache of his longing - it only made it worse.

Rufus clenched and unclenched his fists, his jaw set tight for only a moment. Tseng observed it wordlessly.

“You don’t wonder how it happened with the others?”

Tseng could guess with Reno: he was prolific and vocal about it. Rude was a genuine mystery and he truly was curious about it, though he wouldn’t admit that to Rufus. Elena, he preferred not to think about at all.

“I don’t suppose it matters,” Tseng answered, returning his gaze out the window. “You’ll tell me whether I want you to or not, won’t you, Rufus?”

Rufus stood up and was in front of him in one long stride. He leaned over him, bracing his hand against the arm of the chair and curling Tseng’s tie around his other hand. This was by far the boldest he had ever been and Tseng chalked it up to the house arrest getting to him, but the fact remained that Tseng also made no effort to stop him. He didn’t want to, not with the jealous rage the conversation had sparked.

“Rude fucked me in a shower stall in the employee gym,” Rufus said, yanking lightly on Tseng’s tie as he slid forward to straddle Tseng’s lap.

“Rufus,” Tseng breathed. He held perfectly still. “You’re crossing a line.”

“So do something about it. I’m fucking sick of this, Tseng.” He yanked harder on the tie, forcing a gasp from Tseng’s throat and causing the heat to pool between his legs. Up until this point, as lacking in subtlety as it was, Rufus’ moves had been almost timid. Even though Tseng knew it was wrong, felt certain he couldn’t bring himself to cross the line he so desperately wanted to, he was enjoying getting a rise out of Rufus so much that he also couldn’t bring himself to stop.

Rufus leaned forward and gripped some of Tseng’s hair in his hands. It was the first time Rufus had ever touched his hair in the fifteen years they had known each other and the feeling of his fingers brushing along his scalp, of his chest pressed flat against Tseng’s, flipped a switch somewhere in Tseng’s brain. He was barely aware of how hard he was breathing as Rufus pressed his lips against his ear.

“When Rude fucked me,” he whispered. “I closed my eyes and pretended it was you.”

Tseng shifted his hips as all the blood left his brain to move between his legs at the mere thought of it.

“And what about Elena?” he asked, despite the fact that he didn’t really want to know.

Whatever the truth of it was, it had nagged at him for years. Rufus had been outspoken about his father’s infidelity and the way he took advantage of every pretty blonde that walked into his office. Perhaps Tseng had been foolish to think Rufus might bend over backwards to avoid repeating his father’s mistakes.

To his surprise, Rufus sat back on his legs with a frown. “I don’t want to talk about that.”

“You brought it up,” Tseng prodded.

“Why do you suddenly care so much?”

“Because!” Tseng exploded. Rufus’ eyes widened and Tseng closed his eyes to calm himself. The outburst had been unexpected even to him. “I simply expected better of you than to follow in your father’s footsteps,” he added more softly.

Rufus balked at him. “Is that what you think it was?”

“Well then what was it?” Tseng demanded.

Rufus slid off of his lap suddenly and began to pace. Tseng had struck a nerve. “I fucked Elena because we were both so fucking miserable over you!”

“You…what?” Tseng stared at him.

“I wasn’t going to do it for exactly the reason you said. It wasn’t anything with the others,” Rufus said, waving his hand dismissively. “She’s the one who pushed it further. She was head over heels for you, surely you knew that? She wasn’t exactly subtle. I was so…” He clenched his fists. “I was sick of it feeling so unrequited with you, Tseng. And she was miserable because I told her she didn’t have a chance because you’re gay. We fucked each other wishing it was you.”

That answer somehow felt worse than Tseng’s suspicions. He stared at Rufus and said nothing.

“Shiva’s tits, Tseng. You really don’t see it do you?”

“Rufus, I know how you feel about me,” Tseng said firmly. “I’ve known for a long time. The flirting, the touching. What did you want me to do? There are rules, there are-”

“No,” Rufus shook his head. “You don’t have a fucking clue.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m in love with you!”

The silence that followed filled the entire room. Rufus stared at Tseng with a furrowed brow, a fierceness in his eyes, refusing to look away. Tseng stared back and tried to think of anything to say. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn’t this. A harmless physical attraction was one thing, but _love_?

Love? What did either of them know about it? The only person that had ever shown Rufus an ounce of it had been his mother and she had been dead for over twenty years.

Tseng was aware that what he said next was a mistake even before the words left his mouth.

“How would you even know what love feels like, Rufus?”

Rufus exhaled slowly. “Wow. Fuck you, Tseng.” He turned and stormed off down the hall and Tseng heard the door slam as he locked himself in his bedroom.

What the hell had possessed Tseng to say that to Rufus?

He stayed in the armchair and stared out the window as the rain picked up. How had he not realized Rufus was in love with him? Probably because he hardly remembered what love felt like anymore. Platonic love he could understand to a degree. If love meant being ready and willing to die for someone then he loved his fellow Turks at least. He knew, deep down, that he loved Rufus because Rufus was his only _true_ friend. But loving a friend was vastly different than being _in_ love.

What did that even feel like?

It felt like a fist curling around his heart every time he looked at the other person, it felt like an unbidden jealousy at the thought of someone else with them even as he recognized how absurd and unhealthy that jealousy was.

It felt like fifteen years of shared history, of mounting tension, of a desire to protect and hold close the only thing that truly mattered in his life in that moment. What the fuck had he been thinking? He was so blind to his own feelings that he had projected his discomfort with the concept onto Rufus.

Why did it hurt to breathe?

How long had he been in love with Rufus Shinra?

Too proud - no, too afraid - to face his mistake, Tseng rose from the armchair, leaving his half finished beer on the end table as he made his way into his own bedroom. He stripped down to his underwear and climbed into bed and lay there staring at the ceiling, replaying the conversation with Rufus over and over in his head.

What was he supposed to do now? He couldn’t go on pretending this hadn’t happened and his heart physically hurt at the thought of how Rufus looked at him as he rebuffed his love. The line he had spent years trying not to cross seemed utterly irrelevant in the wake of this revelation between them.

It must have been past midnight when he gave up on sleep and rose from the bed. Without giving a second thought to what he was doing, tired of over thinking every aspect of his relationship with Rufus, Tseng stormed down the hall to Rufus’ bedroom and attempted to open the door only to find it locked.

He banged on the door.

“Rufus.”

The reply came a moment later. “What the fuck do you want?”

“Please open the door.”

“No.”

“Rufus, please,” Tseng begged. “Please let me talk to you.”

Several painstaking seconds passed before he heard the click of the lock mechanism. He opened the door and found Rufus glowering at him from the edge of the bed.

“Say whatever it is you want to say.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Profound,” Rufus replied dryly.

“Rufus,” Tseng took a step closer to him. “I love you too.”

This got his attention. He looked up to meet Tseng’s gaze. “And what would _you_ know about it?” His voice had a bitter bite to it.

“I’m sorry that I said that.” Tseng fell to his knees in front of Rufus. “The truth is that I haven’t been in love in years and years…so long that I’m not even sure that’s what it was. You don’t understand…” He sighed and stared down at his hands. “To be a Turk, you have to give up so much of yourself. Personal attachments are dangerous. They get the people you love killed. It happened to Veld and I refused to let it ever happen to me. It was so much easier when I hated you.”

“Tseng,” Rufus said softly. His fingers curled around Tseng’s chin and forced his head up to meet his gaze.

“I have no clue what to do with this feeling.” There was a desperation to Tseng’s voice as he said it. It felt like something foreign that needed to be excised. There wasn’t enough space for it inside Tseng’s tiny heart.

Rufus brushed his thumb against Tseng’s cheek. “For just one second could you please forget about your rules…self-imposed or otherwise? I spent so long telling myself it was just a foolish unrequited crush, but I can’t pretend anymore. I trust you more than I trust anyone on the planet and you of all people know how hard it is for me to trust. Even after everything we’ve been through a part of me has worried that you might have a change of heart and turn on me…tell all of our plans to my father and…” He trailed off.

“No,” Tseng said, curling his fingers around Rufus’ hand where it rested against his cheek. “Never. You have my loyalty until I breathe my last breath.”

Rufus sighed. “You were right though. I don’t know what love feels like. That’s why it took me so long to come to terms with how I felt about you.”

“Rufus.” Tseng pressed his face against Rufus’ stomach, wrapping his arms around him and holding himself still like that, uncertain of how to proceed, overwhelmed by years of repressed emotion bubbling to the surface all at once. Rufus ran his fingers through Tseng’s hair, his other hand gently kneading against the back of Tseng’s neck.

“Well,” Rufus said. “What do we do now?”

Tseng couldn’t answer the question of what they would do in the long term, with so many other factors at play, but he knew unequivocally what he wanted to do in the immediate moment.

Forget the rules. Rules held no value in this situation any longer.

He pressed his lips delicately against Rufus’ navel and Rufus’ skin jumped, but he didn’t recoil. Tseng pulled away from him and stood up.

“Lay down on the bed,” he commanded. It was the first and only time he had given Rufus an order and Rufus complied readily, shuffling backward and laying flat on his back, staring up at Tseng with a hunger in his eyes.

Tseng climbed on top of him and pressed their bodies together, brushing his nose lightly against Rufus’, bringing their lips as close as he possibly could without actually touching. Rufus leaned up to bridge the gap and Tseng drew back just enough to leave him wanting, pleased with the rush of air that left Rufus’ lungs at this move.

“Tseng,” he breathed, clutching at Tseng’s shoulder. “Is a decade not a long enough wait?”

“You’ve always been impatient,” Tseng replied, but all the same he brought their lips together, raking his fingers along Rufus’ scalp and clutching some of his hair in his hand as he did so.

It was as though a fuse had been lit. Once their lips came together, Rufus pulling him closer, his kisses greedy and urgent, that was it for Tseng - there would be no going back now. He never wanted to let go of Rufus again. He wanted to spend the rest of his life in his arms and die with their lips locked together.

Rufus was the first to open his mouth against Tseng’s, sliding his tongue between Tseng’s lips and moaning softly as they ground their bodies together. Beyond the immediate pleasure was a sense of relief at the release of so much tension Tseng had barely been aware he had been carrying around for years now.

Although it was difficult to remove his lips from Rufus’ - Rufus kept pulling him back and gripping insistently at his neck - eventually Tseng moved his kisses along Rufus’ jaw and down his neck, across his shoulder, running his tongue along the groove of his clavicle and drawing a moan from his throat.

“ _Tseng_ ,” he gasped.

The sound of Rufus so needy and desperate for him drove Tseng wild.

He continued kissing a path down Rufus’ body, rolling his thumb over one nipple while his lips found the other. Rufus arched his back and gripped some of Tseng’s hair as his breath grew ragged. Tseng kissed down his chest to his navel, encircling his bellybutton with his tongue and drawing out another moan as he reached the edge of Rufus’ underwear.

Rufus’ arousal was evident and Tseng took his time - if he was going to do this, break these rules and finally cross that line with Rufus, he was going to do it right. He cupped his hand against the outline of his erection and squeezed lightly. Rufus groaned and thrust his hips against Tseng’s hand, which he quickly replaced with his mouth, delicately kissing along the length of it through the fabric of his underwear.

“ _Ah…Tseng_!” Rufus’ hips jerked involuntarily.

Tseng sat up and hooked his fingers in the elastic of Rufus’ boxers, pulling them down his legs. Rufus kicked them the rest of the way off and Tseng sat for a moment observing Rufus Shinra, stark naked and completely at his mercy, staring up at him with heavy-lidded eyes.

Wordlessly, Tseng gripped Rufus’ cock at the base and pumped his hand up and down the length of it a few times. Rufus moaned and curled his fingers around the sheets.

“Please,” he gasped.

“What?” Tseng asked, settling himself between his legs and nipping at the inside of his thigh. The sound Rufus made was almost pained.

“Use your mouth,” he begged.

Tseng kissed the crease where his thigh met his hip, down to the inside of his thigh and across to his other leg while Rufus squirmed beneath his touch and groaned in increasing desperation, eyes squeezing shut each time Tseng’s lips ghosted over his erection. Tseng waited until he had come completely apart, hair disheveled, aching groans coming from his throat, begging and pleading for what he wanted, and that was when his lips encircled the head of Rufus’ cock and he took him into his mouth as far as he could.

Rufus let out a breath like a steam valve releasing pressure and settled back against the bed with a moan while Tseng bobbed his head against him, pressing his tongue flat against the underside of his cock and swirling it over the head. His heartbeat throbbed between his legs as Rufus moaned his name and arched his back, lost in ecstasy.

Tseng released Rufus abruptly and sat back on his legs, pleased with the look of irritation this earned him.

“Why did you stop?” Rufus demanded, propping himself up on his elbows.

“All this time waiting and you want the night to culminate like that?” Tseng quirked an eyebrow.

Rufus smirked at him and sat up fully, gripping Tseng’s hips with his legs and pressing their bodies together as they kissed again.

“So how do you want me?” He purred in Tseng’s ear.

Tseng kissed his neck. “Tell me where you keep the lube.”

“In the end table.” Rufus clutched Tseng’s shoulder with one hand and gestured behind with the other, peppering Tseng’s neck with kisses while Tseng attempted to reach it.

“It’s… _hrmph_. _Rufus_ ,” he huffed. “I can’t reach it with your mouth glued to me like this.”

“Hm,” Rufus said against his skin, apparently unconcerned by this.

He kissed across Tseng’s shoulder and trailed his hand down his chest between his legs, snaking his hands inside Tseng’s underwear and taking hold of him. Tseng let out a gasp of surprise and held still while Rufus stroked him and kissed back and forth across his shoulder and neck.

It now seemed more urgent than ever to retrieve the lube from the nightstand. He pried Rufus off of him with some effort and kicked his underwear off before throwing open the nightstand drawer and taking pause at the sight of several sex toys neatly lined up in a row within.

“I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised.”

Rufus leaned back and watched him with a grin. “The glass one is my favorite,” he said with the same casual air he used when he and Tseng were discussing business. “I’ve used it while thinking of you.”

Tseng’s eyes glazed over at the thought of it. He stared at the toys, momentarily distracted from his task until Rufus leaned past him and plucked the bottle of lube from the drawer, sliding it shut and gripping Tseng’s chin.

“There’ll be time for that later,” he said, placing the bottle in Tseng’s hand and straddling his lap to return to his previous ministrations.

Tseng’s brain was short circuiting from the combination of sensations he was experiencing that evening, both emotional and physical. While Rufus’ mouth was glued to his neck, Tseng squeezed some lube onto his fingers and reached around to squeeze Rufus’ ass, sliding a finger slowly inside of him. Rufus gasped against his skin and clutched at his shoulder as Tseng pumped his finger inside of him.

“ _Yes,_ ” Rufus gasped. “ _Just like that_.”

Tseng complied, sliding a second finger inside of him after a minute or two. Rufus moaned loudly and his hand stilled at the head of Tseng’s cock as he squeezed his eyes shut. Tseng so enjoyed coaxing those sounds out of him that he could have spent the rest of the evening thrusting his fingers inside of Rufus until he came, but Rufus grew impatient with that too quickly.

“ _Ah…fuck…Tseng,_ ” he moaned, digging his fingers into Tseng’s shoulder. He leaned heavily against Tseng and pressed his lips against the soft skin beneath Tseng’s ear. “I want your cock. I _need_ it. _Please_.”

“Oh,” said Tseng.

He withdrew his hand and before he could do anything else, Rufus took the lube and squeezed some into his hand, reaching between Tseng’s legs and stroking him. Tseng leaned back against the headboard and Rufus held himself above him straddling his cock and sinking down onto it with a groan. Tseng too, couldn’t help the groan that left his own throat as that familiar tight heat clenched around him.

Rufus brushed his nose against Tseng’s and rolled his hips, taking control of the movement while Tseng gripped his thighs and let him lead. It felt impossibly good, the culmination of so many years of mutual longing finally coming to a head, bodies grinding together, sweat beading on their skin, tongues entangled. They were as physically close as they could possibly be, unwilling to part even for a deeper breath. Rufus clutched Tseng’s hair with both hands and moaned into his mouth as he ground down harder against him and Tseng thrust his hips up to meet his movements.

“ _Rufus_ ,” Tseng gasped when their lips finally parted.

Rufus leaned his head back, eyes closed, lips parted as another moan left his throat.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” he gasped. “ _Fuck, Tseng…I…ah…_ ”

Tseng gripped Rufus’ cock and pumped his hand against him while they moved. Rufus let out a strangled sound and he came against Tseng’s chest, falling against him with a gasp and clutching his shoulder while Tseng continued to thrust against him. He was so close, the pleasure mounting in his body threatening to explode. Rufus kissed his neck languidly and whispered against his ear,

“I love you.”

Every nerve in Tseng’s body fired at once, his vision going white, his toes curling and his pace faltering as his came inside of Rufus with a long, low moan. He fell back against the bed, boneless and gasping for breath. Rufus lay against him and for several minutes neither of them said anything while they caught their breath and waited for their heart rates to return back to baseline.

Rufus let out a contented sigh and kissed Tseng’s chest before propping himself up over him.

“That was fantastic.”

Tseng’s eyelids were heavy with fatigue. “I’m only sorry I spent so much time wringing my hands over it.”

Rufus slid off of him and Tseng’s body mourned the absence of his heat, but they needed to clean up. With a monumental effort, Tseng sat up and followed Rufus into the bathroom. When they had finished cleaning up, Rufus draped himself back along the bed and fixed Tseng with a coy look. Tseng hovered uncertainly at the edge of the bed.

“Don’t tell me you’re going to go back to your own bed after that. You tell me you love me, you fuck the life out of me, and you’re just going to leave?” He batted his eyelashes.

Tseng sighed and slipped under the covers, lying down next to Rufus. “Must you always be so dramatic?”

“Yes,” Rufus said, kissing him and curling against him. Tseng was happy for the warmth. He curled his fingers around Rufus’ where his hand rested on his chest.

Privately, Tseng wondered what happened next, but he didn’t give voice to it. There would be plenty of time still to discuss these matters. It was enough for one evening to come to such a monumental realization and to finally cross a line he had thought of often in the last months and years with Rufus.

The sound of the rain against the window was a comforting one, although just hours earlier he had found it irksome. He closed his eyes and listened to the rain mingling with Rufus’ calm, steady breath and all the confusion and jealousy he had felt before seemed absurd in retrospect.

It didn’t matter who had been there before him. Rufus loved _him_.

Nothing else mattered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWO IDIOTS IN LOVE!!! TWO BEAUTIFUL SEXY BAD MEN IN LOVE!!!
> 
> Thank you to everyone who read this and to twitter/discord for listening to my headcanon vomiting that led to this fic. Hope you enjoyed it!


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